You want a brand new modern bathroom. Where do you start? How do you know where to start and how will it all come together? How do you know it’ll look good when you’re not a designer?

You can simply buy the suite and fit it yourself if you’re short on budget, or you can buy the suite and get your builder or plumber to fit it. Or you can pay one company to do the entire fitting and supply.

But which is best?

We sell bathroom suites on their own, without fitting, if this is the option you prefer but we recommend that we also fit the bathroom for you – and it’s not just so we can make more money from you…

 

 

Will your bathroom have continuity?

A bathroom needs to flow and it needs to fit seamlessly into your room. We work constantly with the products that we offer, and we get to know them very well. We often find that if you source the suite from one place and the tradesmen from another that the renovation doesn’t go so well.

The fitter will often be unfamiliar with the suite and when something goes wrong the blame thrower comes out. “It’s the supplier’s fault, it’s the fitter’s fault, it’s your fault…” and this doesn’t get a bathroom fitted on time and to the highest standard.

We find you’ll have much more success if you buy your bathroom from someone who can professionally fit it too. Then the whole project is under their control – and it’s only their fault if it doesn’t go to plan.

 

Can you project manage your bathroom renovation?

To have a new bathroom fitted requires a number of tradespeople. As well as the bathroom fitter with plumbing skills you’ll need an electrician, plasterer, carpenter and a tiler. Not only that but you’ll need to get all this working in the right order too.

The bathroom fitter will need to remove the bathroom and knock all of the tiles off the walls first.

He’ll then ideally need to set up some of the pipework before the plasterer comes in. This is one area that saves time because if the bathroom fitter is familiar with the products it helps hugely and can save time. 

Then the electrician will need to come in to carry out the first part of the electrical work before the plaster. 

The plasterer then needs to plaster the walls and ceiling if needed. 

Then the bathroom fitter comes back to fit the bath and/or shower tray and get the important pipework set up for the basin, WC and shower. 

The tiler then needs to come in and tile the walls and floor around the suite.

The electrician will then need to come back in to finish his work off. This could be either before or after the tiler comes in.

Then the bathroom fitter comes back for the final fit.

It’s a big organisational headache and we find this can cost you weeks if not months if you don’t orchestrate the whole affair well. It only takes one of those trades to disappear on a ‘big job’ and you’re left waiting around while the other trades fill their time on others’ jobs… and then of course the same will happen to them too.  

 

Will the different trades like each other?

As you can see, all of the trades need to work in conjunction with each other so that it all works correctly. 

What if the trades don’t know each other? How will they work together? 

You might think this is unimportant but it’s a fundamental part of it all working well together and looking like it should at the end.

How often in your own working environment have you been at work and because you do or don’t get on with a particular colleague? The job you’re doing either goes well or doesn’t because of the relationship (or lack off) you have with other staff member.

People have emotions and feelings and they like things done a certain way. We’re also all different. Throwing random tradesmen in a small room together doesn’t always end well!

If it doesn’t go well? It will almost always require removal of at least something and then starting again.

You may be able to reuse the main parts but it’s unlikely that you’ll be able to remove the tiles and reuse them.

 

Don’t waste your money on poor fitting…

Spending a small fortune on a suite and then saving on fitters really doesn’t make sense. All bathrooms are different and have their own style, fitting and many come with their own ‘issues’ during fitting that an expert who also supplies them gets to know very well.

If you use a company like Alan Heath and Sons you’ll get a company that not only believes in the product, but know it inside out and can fit it the best possible way giving you the best possible result.

Yes, it may cost you slightly more… but you’ll really benefit from making the right choice.

 

We’ll leave you with this little story from a customer who came into the showroom recently…

The family came in after placing an order with a well-known store. The store have recommended plumbers who you then have to contact once you’ve bought the bathroom suite. It all sounds fine… but then disaster stuck!

One the Saturday morning before the bathroom fitting was about to fitted was about to start, the fitter phoned the customer and said that there had been a mix-up and they couldn’t start the job now until March! 

The suite and fitting were organised back in OCTOBER! 

The goods had already been delivered to the customer who had them scattered across their house.

The fitter blamed the store, the store blamed the fitter and the customer was left with a bathroom in pieces in their house. It was eventually returned to them after much fuss.

We’re now starting again from scratch but we’ll be fitting the entire bathroom as they’re learnt their lesson the hard way!

This is a perfect example of what happens when no one is prepared to take responsibility. When you get just one company to fit and supply you simply won’t get that issue.